When the World Laughs
by SetsunaNoroi
Summary: A woman is witness to a murder, nothing new in Gotham, but she tells strange stories of events that don't seem right in the world she's in. She might just be shaken due to the events but there seem to be two Jokers now, one in the morgue and another she swears is innocent. The things she claims might just shake Gotham to its core and there are a lot of people interested by her.
1. A Lost Soul

Fast aside before we get started on the story, first thank you for checking this out. I haven't written a Batman story in a very long time, almost ten years in fact, and it was a very short story to begin with featuring the Scarecrow and a mute victim, purely a one shot. The reason for this is despite loving the DC universe I largely stopped reading around the early 2000's, stopping just a little while after the Hush story line, around the time Riddler was reformed and made into a private detective. I still liked the individual comics but some of the stories were getting too dark for my tastes so I largely moved onto other things. The universe restarting with Countdown, the very odd mess of the New 52, and just some strange choices how to make the characters more "goddamn" gritty made me wander to other stories. I liked when the books were mature instead of dark for the sake of being dark and greatly enjoyed a few things that were brought up like, Damian Wayne. He was a created character from much earlier Elseworld stories I'd loved and seeing him brought into the main continuity in all his angry little glory felt amazing. I also adored the expansion of characters like Harley Quinn (now reminding me greatly of Deadpool as she does both bad and good, has emotional and sweet moments as well as zany adventures, and even was retconned to be a single parent to a child kept safe with others in the background) and others like Stephanie Brown as Batgirl.

Recently though, I found a comic I totally loved, aka, the White Knight. If you haven't read it, first you should because it's amazing, but it's a non-canon story set after the whole Convergence reboot and is a redemption story for the Joker of all people. Basically he regains his sanity and works to undo some of the damage he's done to Gotham and his relationship with Harley. It's beautiful in showing that unlike the hyper competent rouge's gallery that are rather good at planning ahead and reasonable thinking despite being clinically insane, the Joker from this world is actually fairly broken and explores just how badly his insanity affected him and how crippling it was at times. He's also, even before reformed, much less evil killer monster clown and more the gimmicky Clown Prince of Crime he was in much earlier comics, mostly before Death in the Family and Killing Joke. Think more along the Animated Series of the 90's, serious but not in the angsty way, but with real and believable drama.

Anyway, all that gave me an idea for this story, a sort of experiment if you will, to try an idea. I don't honestly know how it will go over but I'd like to give it a shot. All reviews and criticisms are welcomed at this point since I'm mostly using this as a writing experiment. I want to try and shake things up for the story and deal with fallout of something major happening in Gotham. I'll go into more details in my thought process in all of this after the chapter, since I don't want to spoil anything by talking about it now.

I do want to establish a few things though. This will probably have a loose relationship with the continuity. DC has made things pretty confusing with retcons, event comics with strange focus problems, worlds ending and whatnot but I will do my best to keep it simple in a general timeline. Like I said most of my knowledge becomes sketchy around the 2003-2004 stories since I stopped buying most of the books, but I think I know enough to include characters like Damian and the reformed Harley Quinn, as well as probably adding the little cutie that is Jonathan Clark(I know he's from Convergence and didn't exist technically before but if DC can play fast and loose with timelines why can't I?). Seriously, after the Super Sons comics I just wouldn't want Damian to be without his best friend. You can figure the New 52 didn't happen cause what I did see of it I didn't much like, just like stories like Amazons Attack and the Identity Crisis, which started the whole darker and edgier world thing in the first place so I'm just ignoring the lot of it. I will ESPECIALLY be ignoring Cry for Justice and what they did to poor Roy Harper and his kid.

Basically it will have the full cast of the Bat Family and other characters of the DC universe to the vague timeline of when Batman Incorporated started, but in a style more of the comics and cartoons of the 90's where dramatic things did happen but it was less about sickening shock deaths and out of character behavior and more characters trying to balance their lives with being superheroes. The only thing I will keep from the earlier mentioned stories is Tim Drake being without parents and getting adopted by Bruce since it's so ingrained now in how the characters interact with one another. Even before his dad died in the comics a lot of media was presenting Tim as an orphan anyway and a little brother to Nightwing, so I won't shake that status quo. The main reason I bring all this up is when characters like Lian show up right alongside others like Jon, I want people to understand why and not get confused about the timeline. I tried to keep the setting straight while still using different elements for this story from various sources. I'll do my best to keep it all clear cut though. After all, like I said this is largely a writing exorcise but I do want it to be an enjoyable story.

Now that I got that long winded bit out of the way, I think it's fairly clear I don't own the Batman franchise. It all belongs to DC and Warner Brother, and anyone else involved in the day to day operations. Please enjoy the story.

Chapter 1: A Lost Soul

There were a lot of assumptions that people who were not native to Gotham would often make about the city. It had a reputation about it based on assumptions that a lot of people made and while quite a lot of them were true, a city with a former DA now robbing banks along with a plant woman and at least two crazy clowns running around did have a tendency to leave an impression on people after all, not ever single one of the rumors were quite on the mark. In fact a lot of thing were just downright wrong about what kind of things were commonplace about anything in the city borders.

The police station of Gotham was a location that a lot of expectations were wrong about as well. In the time before the effort to clean up the crime, mobsters and gangs had ruled everything about the city. Corruption had been down to almost every element and the police had been right there with it. It left one thinking of grungy cops that took bribes, sleazy deals including wads of cash left off in brown paper bags, a place and people that was both figuratively and literally dirty. Even after the Batman had come and Gotham started on the road to recovery the image stuck.

It wasn't entirely true though, not anymore. Enough time had passed, enough work had been put into the effort to a make a better place, that a lot of things had changed. In the right time, Gotham City Police Department could actually be quite cozy. The city had become so engrossed in crime that it was going to be an uphill climb for quite a while, even after so long. The police department was always bustling and busy, people comings and going at anytime there. Cops and detectives often had to pull double shifts and overtime, caring too much about their city to let it slide backwards now. The corruption from this place was gone, for the most part, and there were certainly now a lot more officers that cared than those who didn't.

As such, it was almost a second home to just about everyone who worked there, and they made an effort to keep it pretty nice. A lot of people brought decent coffee from home for the machines, the smell of a good meal cooked quick in Tupperware during a lunch break wafted in the air instead of filth, and there were several throw pillows on the couches for the stray officer to get some sleep during breaks when they needed it. The old building had even been lovingly restored recently, a donation drive to keep the place in top shape and up to code done a couple years back and the construction finished a few months ago. A few rooms still smelled of fresh paint with clean and sparkly floors, a far cry from the crumb filled carpets and coffee stained desks from so long ago.

Money back in the day to improve anything for the police often went into back pockets instead of where it belonged, though that had long since changed.

It was supposed to have a welcoming atmosphere, to make people feel safe, and maybe even a little at home. In most cases, it probably would. Hundreds of people had to come in here every day to give reports or testaments of some kind, comforted by a warm cup of coffee offered to them or a friendly police officer reassuring them and telling them that things would be okay.

The woman sitting in the questioning room wasn't really sure if it was working or not. Honestly she wasn't feeling very comforted at the moment but to be fair she wasn't feeling much of anything right now.

The door was open and she could hear some talking from outside in the hall, but she wasn't paying much attention to the words. She felt numb and cold, in more ways than one. Though there was a hot cup of coffee in her hands, she hadn't taken a sip from it, and it was starting to lose it's temperature, along with the blanket over her shoulders that was feeling more like a heavy burden than a source of warmth. She'd only been brought in a short while ago and had spent a very long time outside, hours at least she was sure. At this point she'd kind of lost track of time aside from the vague notion that too much of it had passed since she'd last been able to check.

She sighed over her coffee and shut her eyes for a moment. It was a mistake, immediately seeing something in her mind that she didn't want to. The sight of the bodies in front of her on the cold ground was still stuck in her head, and she wanted it to go away. The horrible way the eyes hadn't closed at death drilled into her like a drill and the awful thoughts just wouldn't leave her be. She'd always thought that happened when someone died. In the movies it was always how it worked. Someone would get hurt, have long enough to have some final words and then their eyes would slide shut and the head would slide a little to the side to always show they'd passed on. What she had seen had not been anything like the movies, not at all.

Swallowing, she suddenly took a deep gulp of the lukewarm coffee. It might have tasted wonderful while hot but she wouldn't have noticed. Everything tasted like ashes now, but it was late and suddenly she was terrified of dozing. What would happen when she fell asleep? What kind of nightmares would haunt her when she drifted off? The woman was already feeling sleepy and yet she couldn't imagine allowing herself to go to bed any time soon. Suddenly all she wanted was caffeine to stave off tiredness for as long as she possible could.

"Miss?" a gentle voice called into the room and she looked up. An old man was standing in the doorway, a strong looking figure despite his hair of white and bushy mustache. He looked tired too and she wondered if he had been up for a long time as well from the slight bags under his eyes. Was that a permanent look on him, she wondered. This was Gotham City after all. Surely they all burned the candle at both ends. Still, he smiled for her as he came into the room, a kind and sweet smile meant for grandchildren, full of wisdom in a world he'd occupied for a long time. "My name is Jim Gordon, commissioner for the GCPD. How are you feeling?"

"I'm… I don't know," she breathed honestly. "I really don't. I'm sorry. I know you-"

"Ma'am, it's okay. I know things like this are always a shock," he said as he rubbed at the back of his neck. "Though, I have to admit, this is just a little bit out of my jurisdiction. I understand that you already gave a statement to the officers that found you. They informed me of what you said."

"I must have sounded crazy," she sighed.

"Not that crazy. You'd be surprised what kind of things I've seen and heard in my time on the force," he assured her. "A lot more than I like to think about at times. This must be very confusing for you, but don't worry. We're here to help."

"Thank you," she whispered before she sat the coffee down on the table in front of her and pulled the blanket a little closer. She hadn't really been wearing clothing intended for the outside, slacks and a simple white button up shirt, not even a jacket. She was lucky it hadn't been snowing or she was sure frostbite might have happened in the time she'd been outside, sitting on the curb while with the cops and giving her statement as they waited for the ambulance. It was hard to remember exactly what had happened then, the red and blue lights flashing around her, all the questions hitting her, and the god awful sound of laughter filling the air. It all seemed like a bad dream, only half recalled and muddy in her memories.

"I know you've already given your statement, but I was hoping that maybe you would be willing to go through it again with me, just to make sure we have a full understanding of what happened," he stated. "Do you mind?"

"I… I don't think… I'm not sure," she said as she shook her head. She didn't want to talk about it again. She didn't think she ever would want to talk about it another time but did she have much of a choice? Something told her this story was going to be drug from her several times, from police, maybe on the stand in a courtroom, and who knows how many reporters would come after her once word got out. "Oh god… I just want to go home."

Before she knew it, a hand was on her shoulder, not heavy as it rested on her but surprisingly light. That kind of caught her off guard given his bulk. He looked like a tall man and barrel chested, and his hand was large on her shoulder. Still, it was a light pressure, one she could push away if she wanted to.

It made her wonder, as she stared at it with misty eyes, just how many times had he gone through this, comforting a victim. She swallowed a lump in her throat and blinked away the tears, trying her best to calm down, even as her lip trembled.

"It's okay," he assured her in a soft voice, like someone not wishing to spook a trembling and scared animal. "It's going to be okay, I promise. It might seem like the world is ending right now, but it will feel better eventually."

She sniffled before rubbing at her eyes, trying to wipe away the unshed tears. She had already cried more times than she could count tonight. It was amazing she was still capable of it at this point. Was it even possible for them to dry up?

"Where's my dad?" she asked him instead. "Please, can't I see him? Just for a bit?"

The man looked hesitant for a moment before shaking his head.

"I'm sorry, but he's in the hospital right now. Until this whole mess is cleared up then I'm afraid it's going to be a while," he explained to her.

"How long is a while?"

"We won't keep you from him," he promised. "This is just a difficult situation. Cooperating with us is the best way to keep this moving smoothly."

She found herself frowning at that. She doubted he had intended it like the way she'd heard it, but it had sounded a bit like a threat to her. Would they keep her here until she did as she was asked? Would they keep her dad from her? Was that even allowed?

Given the fact he'd killed someone right in front of her she supposed they could do whatever they wanted with him.

"It was self-defense, or I mean close to it. He only did it to keep me safe," she said firmly. "He's a good person, I swear. He never would have done it except to protect me."

"According to your statement the attack happened after your mother had been killed," Gordon said. "Are you changing your statement?"

"No, of course not. I mean… He did act after my mother had been shot but… I swear, I swear he's not a bad person. It's not revenge, please. Please, don't lock him up," she begged, her voice on the verge of breaking before he gently shook her.

"Ma'am, ma'am, calm down," he said. "I just need the facts. The more I know the easier it will go for the police, you and your father."

She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. That didn't sound as reassuring as it should have. There was no answer about her father, none that she liked. Would she even see him again without bars between the two of them?

"Okay, I'll talk," she whispered softly. "Do you want the whole story or just to answer questions?"

"The whole story, if you will?" he said as he moved back around the table and sat down in front of her. Pulling a small device from his coat, he laid it down on the table to reveal it to be a recorder before pressing a button to turn it on. "Whenever you're ready. Take your time if you need to."

She drew in a deep breath and sighed before nodding her head. The whole story, huh? She barely understood everything that happened herself but she had to do the best she could, for her father if nothing else.

"My name is Lucy," she said, trying her best to keep her voice as even and strong as she possibly could. She didn't want to waver at all while doing this. "I don't know where exactly, or why I'm here but… I don't think I'm supposed to be here. My father is… He had begun partnership for investigation into a theoretical science concerning alternate dimensions under the theory that different vibration frequencies had different worlds. Experimental machines to locate and record these places was being worked on. I don't really know all the details on all that, just that my dad was handling the legal paperwork and the permits for the building since it was taking so much space and stuff. I wasn't involved really, but I went there tonight with my mother..."

Her throat caught up at the mention of her mom and she had to stop to take a breath, suddenly feeling a pain in her chest. She didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be in some station explaining the demise of her mother. She wanted to be at home where it was warm and waiting for dinner to be made, maybe even helping out with the food. It suddenly occurred to her she hadn't helped in the kitchen nearly as much as she should have.

"I… We were there to pick up my dad. He was there to get some papers signed with the head of research," she continued. "There was a blackout and… I don't know. The lights just suddenly came back on and all the machines flared up."

"Was it some kind of accident?" he asked her.

"Maybe? I mean, like I said, I don't know anything about this kind of thing. I'm not a scientist," she said as her shoulders slumped. "The machines just turned on when they'd been off before. There wasn't any testing going on in the evening anyway so I guess they shouldn't have been on in the first place. It didn't seem like any big deal to me, but suddenly there was… this… this light, I guess, this really blinding white light. Next thing I know we were standing in this warehouse. I had no idea what was going on, and the scientist who'd been with us was just gone."

"The head of research. Can you tell me his name?" Gordon asked.

"I'm not sure. I'd never spoken to him before. Tom I think? No… no, it was Tim. Tim Fox," she said as she struggled to remember. She think she'd actually seen him for the first time that night, introduced in passing by her dad as he'd been gathering things into his briefcase. Had she even said hello to him? She couldn't really remember.

"We weren't sure what had happened. The building was the same but it was all empty, abandoned and dusty. We couldn't just stay there so we decided to try and get some help. Our phones weren't even working, no signal or something, so we decided to explore and maybe find someone."

She still remembered walking out of the building and seeing no one around at all. That part of town when she'd went inside had been bustling, streetlights on everywhere and people walking around, but when coming out it had been deserted, lights broken and graffiti everywhere. Doors and windows had been boarded up like no one had lived in that section of the city for years. A tingle of fear had run up her spine then, as if knowing something horrible was going to happen. She should have begged for them to stay where they were, wait until day to get help, anything other than just walking out into the streets.

"We found someone eventually… he… he saw us and said we weren't supposed to be snooping around here. It was pretty obvious we weren't supposed to be there and we tried to leave before… We got surrounded instead, there were all these men around us and… and the most horrifying person I'd ever seen. This guy with a white face and green hair and..."

"The Joker?" Gordon supplied but she shook her head.

"It can't have been the Joker. I mean, I suppose it was, but that just doesn't make any sense," she breathed. "My dad… he… Oh god… He just freaked out and we were grabbed. The Joker saw us and… I don't know. He did this double take and then just… he just started to laugh. He… he seemed to think we were funny and… look, I don't know why he did it. He was crazy. We weren't a threat. He just started spouting nonsense and we were kidnapped!"

"Miss, calm down. I-"

"How am I supposed to be calm?" she asked him suddenly. "I didn't know where I was or what was going on! We were just trying to find someone to help us and that maniac started yelling at my dad about copycats or something! He didn't do anything! None of us did! We just suddenly started getting drug off the streets and into this factory across the street that looked like a carnival from hell!"

The tears came to her eyes then and she started to sob, unable to hold it back. Covering her face with her hands, she shook her head. This wasn't real, it wasn't real. It couldn't be real. It was all some bad dream and she was going to wake up any time now.

"He kept demanding who my dad thought he was, even as he tried to calm the maniac down. Then… the J-Joker pulled a gun, said if we didn't explain then… my mom... she tried to get to me when the shooting started," she gasped out. "I ended up getting pushed to the ground in the struggle while my mom... she... god... she got shot and my father he… he snapped. He just started to shake and looked crazed. He suddenly just threw the one holding him to the ground and jumped on the Joker and… and… he grabbed him by the throat and he..."

Her father has started laughing. It had been the most high pitched and yet awful sound she'd ever heard in her life, like some kind of crazed banshee. She'd just sat there, watching in horror as she'd watched her dad strangle another man to death like it had been nothing, seeing her mother twisted on the ground as she bled out only a few feet away from her. Someone had bumped into her, rushing to get away she guessed, like most of the others had scattered. It had all erupted into chaos at that point as the two had wrestled about and the Joker was firing shot after shot into the air, though she supposed the shock of all that would be enough to make anyone freak out and run even without the danger. No one had seemed to be in any rush to help their boss, that was for sure.

Even she had been paralyzed, watching as her father had slammed the back of his opponent's head on the floor over and over again, choking him as he himself laughed the whole while. For a long time she had felt like she couldn't move as it played out in front of her, too weak and scared to even whimper out. She'd never so much as seen a dead body before and in the span of a few moments two corpses were laying out in front of her.

"My father didn't mean it," she breathed. "Please, he'd never hurt anyone. He's a good man, I swear. You have to know that, I mean, I'm in the past or something, right? You have to know him, that he's not bad. This is all just some kind of weird mix up or something or… Please. Please, just let me see my father."

Gordon didn't say anything for a moment before he reached out and shut the recorder off and put it back into his pocket.

"I have to check up on a few things. I want you to wait here," he said. "I'll see about having an escort take you to the hospital so you can see him. It won't take long."

She looked up at him with hopeful eyes, red from tears, but he didn't quite meet them as he walked away and out of the room.

The stairs up to the roof were worn and creaked, despite being replaced only recently. He walked up them so often that they already felt old. How many times had he climbed up this path to get to the roof? Enough times he'd long since lost count even this year. Opening the door and letting the wind of the cool November month hit him, he strode up to the Bat Signal and turned it on. He didn't figure he would have to wait long, he never did on most nights.

Sure enough, after a cigarette or two he turned around and saw the large figure on the roof's edge. No Robin or Batgirl that Gordon saw. Were they already at the scene and looking around, or was there other business going on tonight? He hadn't heard anything but sadly, despite it being his job, sometimes he didn't hear things until it was too late. He hoped that wasn't the case tonight. There was already enough on his plate.

"Do you already know?" he asked, wondering if he was going to have to explain things in detail, but the man in shadows only nodded his head. "This is going to be a mess when it gets out. The Joker is dead, along with him two victims, and we have some madman who looks just like him that strangled him to death, and a witness claiming to be the perp's daughter despite how he looks. I don't think she knows exactly where she came from, talking all this stuff about machines for finding alternate dimensions."

"We've come across that kind of thing before," Batman noted. "Several times, really."

"Yeah, you would think the Mayor's office would have a policy for this kind of thing considering how crazy Gotham can get at times," Gordon sighed as he pulled his glasses off and rubbed at his eyes. "This is a fiasco. I don't know where to even start with this one. Do we even know what she's saying is true, or did the shock get to her? Even if it is, do we have jurisdiction to handle people like this? Alternate universes or time travel or whatever it is really aren't our kind of thing, and it would be a big enough mess without Joker cooling down in the morgue and someone in a hospital who hasn't stopped laughing once from what I heard. The papers are going to be all over this the second they find out."

"The first thing to do is determine the truth," Batman said. "We're going to have to find out exactly who she is and why she's here."

"I'll admit, it does sound like there are some holes in her story. She can't even explain how she got here and her memories of the incident are sketchy at best. It makes sense given her shock but she could also just be making things up. Not the first time someone would run around claiming something crazy about the clown and it was all false. It doesn't even sound like there was an accident in this supposed lab she said she was in before she got here. Claimed she was there with her family, the machines somehow turned on after a blackout and then she was just here."

"A teleportation device of some kind?"

"According to her they were supposed to find and record different dimensions, nothing about traveling, but she admits herself she doesn't know much. Unfortunately without another witness we might not get a lot of info, but she claims her father was involved in the project so he might know more, if he'll talk to us eventually," Gordon admitted with a sigh. "Look, this is the kind of thing you always handle. We're not equipped to deal with monsters and aliens and all the other nonsense like this. It's why we have the League in the first place. I'd really appreciate the help."

"I'll look into it," Batman assured him. "Where's the girl?"

"Lucy Napier, and she's downstairs in one of the questioning rooms. She's been asking to leave but I'm not sure that's wise. I can't hold her for long without charging her with something and I don't think she really even needs to be, but she's got nowhere to really go either as far as I know. She wants to see her father who's in Gotham General and I told her she could when I find someone to take her."

He'd only turned away for a moment and the man was gone. Sighing a little, he wondered if he should even rush downstairs to the room. He had a feeling it wouldn't do any good. That girl would surely be gone by the time he reached it.

Despite the brisk nature of his odd partner in fighting crime, he wasn't worried. Batman had never given him a cause to worry before. She'd be fine in his hands, and things would work out somehow. They always did.

Still, he'd love it if one day he would be able to get through a single week without something headache inducing hitting him like this.

Downstairs, Lucy was just wondering if she would be allowed to get up and wander a bit to keep her legs from cramping up when she glanced up and let out a gasp of surprise, immediately throwing her chair back as she jumped up in shock. Batman had seen the reaction too many times to think on it much anymore. Though the costume and motif had always been intended to scare criminals it worked well on just about everyone. Even when he didn't try, people were often unnerved by his presence when he popped up out of nowhere. Fear shone bright in her green eyes under the mess of her blond hair, completely unguarded.

The similarities to Harley Quinn was astounding, but it wasn't proof of his suspicions. He needed to know for sure.

"No," she said firmly, backing herself up into the wall. "No, leave me alone."

"Relax," he said in a tone much less gentle than what the commissioner had used, but still with a soothing tone before. He'd spoken to enough victims and witnesses to be able to keep the balance of a firm voice without coming off as harsh. "I'm not here to hurt you. Do you know who I am? Did you have one of me in your city?"

She frowned a little bit and nodded her head, though looked him over, seeming confused.

"What?" he asked.

"You… you just… look a bit different," she said. "Where's your uniform? Your bullet-proof vest, the badge."

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean," he said. "It's very likely you're in an alternate universe right now. This isn't the first time I've seen this. I know it's confusing but we're here to help you. The man you claim is your father, the Joker, he-"

"His name is Jack Napier, and he is my father," she pressed. "He's not a bad guy."

He paused a bit before frowning. She certainly wasn't calming down at this rate. Perhaps it would be best to just cut to the chase.

"Your mother, the woman who was with you. Was her name Harley?"

"Harleen, actually, but… yeah I mean some people called her that. Not a lot though," she said, eyes downcast at the mention of her mother. "She… I can't believe she's gone. I don't want to believe it, none of this. When dad saw her get shot… he just… Please, he didn't mean it. He's not like that. He doesn't kill people."

"Do you want to see him?" he asked evenly.

"I… What? I mean, yes. I do want to see him, of course I do," she said. "Why?"

"Come with me then. I'll take you to the hospital and we can talk on the way."

"I'd rather not."

"Why?"

"Because he's told me about you, told me about the things you're capable of. I'm not about to trust you."

"Am I a villain in your world?" he asked. It wouldn't be the first time he had heard that before. "Is your father a hero of some kind?"

"He's my hero… but no, not someone in a suit. He's a civil servant. You're the Dark Knight of Gotham but not everyone is a fan of you. My parents told me how extreme you can get," she said. "And you certainly never gave my father any trust, that's for sure. He used to be a villain, but he reformed years ago."

"I'm not your Batman," he reminded her.

"How do I know that? How do I know I'm just not in the past or something? The cops told me what year it is and it's off by about two decades. In my time you're an older man, working alongside the GCPD, and James Gordon isn't even alive anymore! He retired years ago and died in the hospital after a heart attack. It made all the papers, I remember."

"You're not going to get any answers here, I promise you that. So you can either come with me and explain what you do know and we can figure this out together, or I can leave and get the answers from your father. I-"

"No! No, you leave him alone!" she cried out as she surged forward. It momentarily caught him off guard, the sudden shift. She'd gone from cowering away from him to rushing forward and grabbing his cape in her hands so fast he caught her wrists in his hands on reflex, but she wasn't trying to attack him. "Please, please I'll talk! Just don't hurt him!"

It was easy to see the fear in her eyes, the desperation. She clearly wasn't taking any of this situation well.

"You've been through a lot," he said, easing his grip on her hands so he wouldn't bruise her, pulling her off his cape. "Believe me, I understand what you saw. It's not easy. It never is, but to help you and your father I need you to give me some answers."

Her arms fell down to her side and she nodded her head slowly.

"Please, I just want to see him," she breathed.

End of Chapter 1

Like I said before, this is mostly a writing experiment for me. See, as a Batman fan I have a sort of love hate relationship with the Joker. He's easily a very fun and charismatic villain and I've seen so many versions of him that I absolutely adore. On the other hand, the Joker Immunity and revolving door of Arkham has always got to me. It's easy to not mind it when he's just a robber with a gimmick, like in the 60's show and other lighter versions. He doesn't need to die there. He's just a common criminal, but when stories are written when he's literally killing dozens of people every Tuesday when he gets out, it gets harder to swallow. Now, I'm not one of the people who thinks that Batman should kill him. I respect the fact he will never cross that line because he's not the government and he shouldn't be the one to make that call out of fear what will happen if he justifies it even one time, but the utter incompetence of Gotham City keeping anyone locked up is just garbage.

I once read a story where the Joker was killed by Huntress, and it was an excellent read, but besides that I've seen very little on the idea and that was just a one shot as it was. I had the idea to expand on it a little, to show just how the people in the city would react and take the news, the citizens, villains and superheros. I didn't want to ruin the name of any heroes though, so after reading White Knight, I had the idea of hey, what if another Joker did the job?

Originally though this story was going to be much different. I'd planned to have Jack Napier to come in with Harleen without Lucy. Lucy Quinzel isn't really a character of mine, just the established child Harley and the Joker had in the main DC canon, but this would have the problem that Jack would essentially be all alone afterward without anyone to be there for him after his wife had been killed, and I just didn't like that, so I gave them their own version of Lucy, aged up since a kid wouldn't be able to go around and do much. That and I didn't want any confusion between DC's Lucy and my own iteration. Sharing the plan with a friend who is a DC nerd to the extreme, he helped me flesh out her character a little go give the story a central focus.

In any case, opinions are more then welcome and very much appreciated. More will be added later and thank you so much for giving this a read.


	2. A Poor Joke

Not much to say besides that this chapter contains a lot of spoilers for the comic Gotham White Knight. If you are interested in reading it without knowing what happened at the end, you might want to not read this chapter until you have seen it. If you don't care much, then go right ahead.

That being said, please enjoy.

Chapter 2: A Poor Joke

The inside of the Batmobile felt a little cramped to Lucy, though that might have been because she was trying to make herself as small as possible by curling up in on herself. Her hands were held together firmly on her lap while her shoulders had a small ache from being drawn so closely together. She would have had her feet up off the floor and help up to her chest if the position of the seat belt would allow it instead of being too firm against her body and holding her in place. There were so many buttons and flashing lights on the dash board and along the inside of the door on her side that she didn't want to risk anything by touching a single one of them.

It also didn't help the man next to her, larger than life and intimidating beyond measure. She couldn't have relaxed with him if he'd taken her onto a ferris wheel cart. Granted, this guy gave off such a serious vibe she didn't think he'd be caught dead on anything even remotely fun.

"You don't smile much, do you?" she asked him, the first thing that popped into her head. It felt like an incredibly foolish thing to bring up all things considered, but the silence in the car was downright suffocating. Anything, anything at all would be better than that. Despite his demand he talk to her, so far he hadn't said a word since he'd brought her to the car and took off. Ten minutes of complete and utter silence had made her feel twitchy and nervous.

Part of her wondered if perhaps that had been the point or if this was just how he interacted with everyone.

"I'm not known for it, no," he replied simply.

Yeah, scratch that. He was definitely doing this to get to her.

"So about my father," she said instead. "When do you suppose that they'll let him go?"

"What makes you think he's being released?"

"Because it was defense," she said. "I've already told everyone that. I mean, you know what happened, don't you? What I've heard about you, you're like ten steps ahead of everyone anyway, so you must know what's going on."

More silence followed her statement, causing her to frown.

"He didn't do anything wrong," she breathed. "Please, he's a good person. He doesn't… he doesn't hurt people, I swear."

"Why don't you tell me about him?" he suggested, taking a turn on a street. She had no idea where they were, too many things in the city looking different to her. She hadn't seen a hospital sign yet, but then again, he could be going the long way. She had no idea one way or the other. Would he drive around until she told him everything or was she just thrown off by this different Gotham?

"He's… well, he's my dad. I don't know exactly what you want me to say. He works on the Gotham City Council for Backport, and has held the position for several years, just about my entire life. He heads a lot of charity drives around the town and he used to be the Joker," she said with a sigh. "And a lot of people still really, really dislike him."

"People like me?"

"Yeah," she muttered. "People like you. My mom used to tell me all sorts of stories about you."

"Such as?"

"You tried to kill my father," she said. "Just so you know, I'm not going to let you get anywhere near him without me."

He gave her a sideways glance, and she wasn't sure her statement had done any kind of good. Honestly she very much doubted that she could physically keep him from getting close. This guy looked like she was about twice her weight and had muscles on top of even more muscles. She probably couldn't outrun him, much less anything else, but she wasn't about to make it easy for him either.

"So he used to be the Joker. When did that stop?" he replied.

"About twenty-five years ago," she stated. "He got out of Arkham and got cured… sort of. This all happened before I was born but there are these pills that he can take that keep him balanced, temporarily undo the damage of the chemical imbalance in him. Taking them and some therapy, eventually he was released, though apparently he had to go back in for a short while. My mom said they don't celebrate their anniversary on the date they should, instead on the day he was finally released. Something about some… I guess their wedding wasn't a happy day for them. Apparently the ceremony happened in Arkham. Since he was released though he's been fairly normal."

"Fairly?" he asked her, taking another turn.

"Totally normal," she corrected, glancing away. "Man, Gotham is filthy. What's with all the liter?"

"Answer me," he said firmly.

"No seriously, I think that building is more spray paint than brick. What do you guys even URK!"

He'd hit the brake so suddenly that the seat belt caught her chest and make her choke a bit, her eyes watering from the force of it. He was in her space so suddenly she almost screamed from the shock of it, and probably would have if she'd had any air in her lungs. She would have scrambled away, had their been anywhere to even go.

"Don't test me," he snarled. "What did you mean?"

"Okay, okay," she said, pressing herself back into the chair as much as she could manage. It was starting to seem like it had been better when he hadn't been talking to her. "He has episodes sometimes. Nothing major, I swear! He just starts to laugh or talk funny, nothing violent."

"And the city allows him to keep a position within the government with that going on?"

"They don't know," she admitted in a soft voice. "I never said he was perfect, just a good man. Even when he was the Joker, he didn't do anything too bad. He robbed banks, dumped some chemicals in the waters of Gotham to dye fish white one time, and other silly stunts like that."

"And that to you is nothing too bad?"

"Well he certainly didn't ever kidnap a family and start shooting them because he just felt like it," she replied. "Everything he did was just for laughs, a joke. I didn't see anything funny about what that psycho did to us. My father just had a gimmick, that's all. He never once killed anyone before today. Even when he kidnapped someone, he would always just let them go. He did the same one time he grabbed Robin, and from what my parents told me it was the worst thing he'd done, a simple kidnapping."

Batman glared at her, giving her a feeling she shouldn't have mentioned that last one. Slowly something dawned on her, making her stomach feel like it was full of cold lead as she realized. Things were different here, a lot different, and this Joker seemed to be so unlike her father from the little she had seen. Her father had been a criminal, yes, but a mostly harmless one who just had a warped sense of humor and how it was appropriate to show. The one who'd grabbed them had been a maniac, clearly willing to kill someone at the drop of a hat. Had he done the same before?

"Oh god. He killed your Robin?" she asked softly. "I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"I'm the one asking the questions here," he replied, but she couldn't help but notice how his voice had gotten a little softer, even if only for a moment. "You're absolutely sure your father isn't violent?"

"He's been sane for years and he's never hurt anyone in that time," she said. "If your Joker is so bad then I know that might sound hard to believe, but it really is true. This was really a one time thing, but we were in danger. He just reacted."

"Hm. The fact of the matter is he still killed a man," he stated. "No one is going to let him walk free from that."

In her opinion that monster who had killed her family wasn't a man, but she doubted voicing her thoughts on that matter wouldn't exactly endear her plight to him.

"It was defense," she repeated. "That's legally allowed here, isn't it?"

It wasn't even sarcasm, she was starting to honestly doubt it would do any good as an argument for her dad in court.

"It is, but I think that laughing himself mad in the hospital might put a little doubt in anyone who would be willing to let him go," Batman replied before he leaned back and went back to driving. She didn't reply, wilting a little bit. As rough around the edges as this man was, she didn't think he would lie to her about this. She hated to admit it, but she sort of understood. If her father had snapped, had killed anyone, would anyone care if he had been declared sane in her own time? Would anyone even believe her? Her story sounded nuts as it was. Would she be seen as credible? Would it even go to court or would he be declared insane and just tossed in a cell in Arkham?

God, this was all insane, all of it. Someone in this city had to be willing to help her. Surely she could find a lawyer or something, right? How though? She had no money, no resources, not even any friends she could call and ask for help. She and her father had to rely entirely on the mercy of people in a Gotham that wasn't their own, and even in their own city not everyone in town believed Jack Napier was no longer the Joker. Two decades later and there were still people in the city who didn't like him.

Hell, she'd been home schooled for the first eight years of her education to avoid bullying for who her parents were. She doubted anyone was going to be breaking down the doors to help her now.

"He's not a bad person," she whispered as she watched the streets go by as they drove. "He's really not."

"You sound very sure of that," he noted. "Yet he was still a criminal and you yourself said this was all before you were born. How sure are you really what he was like back then?"

"Because no one was ever more paranoid about what the Joker could do then my own parents were," she informed him. "The Joker and Jack Napier aren't the same person, not really. The medication he's on causes a kind of split personality of sorts. Completely different as night and day. They might want the same general things and feel the same way about certain matters, but how they go about goals is totally different."

"What kind of goals?"

"Well they're both utterly obsessed with you for example," she said. "My dad has a shrine to you. It's honestly kind of weird, if you ask me. Most of the time though, he's just Jack Napier. Goes to work, comes home, spends time with his family and that's it. He's utterly normal, but he and mom were always afraid for me. They taught me about the Joker, how he could be dangerous, that he might come out one day for good. I got shown papers on him, taught by my mom how to distract him, get away if I need to. She even applied small doses of laughing gas on me over time so I'd build an immunity."

"You said as the Joker he didn't hurt anyone," Batman stated.

"They weren't scared of him hurting me," she said softly. "They were scared he'd steal me away… I am his daughter too after all. He might have been tempted. If there was anyone who didn't want me to risk being anywhere near him, it was a woman who nearly threw her life away trying to commit crime with him. You think she would have let Jack Napier close to me after that much preparation she put into keeping me safe if she thought for even a second he couldn't be trusted?"

If there was a reply to that, it didn't come. Just moments later they pulled up to an alleyway near a large, multi-storied building, white in color and surrounded by a large parking lot, heavily packed despite how late it was.

It had to be the hospital.

"Get out. We're going in," he said as he opened the top of the car for them.

Honestly speaking, she was starting to get pretty sick of his attitude, not that she had the guts to really say much of anything about it. He'd already been plenty intimidating just for a couple of comments. She wasn't about to do something something so stupid as to tell him off for being less than polite. Instead she just climbed out of the car and followed him as he walked up to the side of the building.

"Isn't the entrance that way?" she asked him.

"Yes," he replied before suddenly he grabbed her and yanked her against his body. She almost slugged him on reflex, or at least was about to try to, before he pulled out his grappling gun and shot it toward the roof. She was yanked up so quickly she screamed aloud, the force of the lift nearly giving her whiplash. Reaching a balcony, she fell to her knees as he released her, glaring up at him.

"What in the world is wrong with you?!" she snapped at him. All of a sudden it didn't matter how scary he was, how much she needed his help, or how badly he could hurt her if he wanted to. He was certifiably insane! "Don't you have any goddamn empathy at all?! I lost my mother and my father might get locked up because all he did was defend us, and you're what? Too dark and mysterious to use the stairs?!"

"Are you done?" he asked her.

"No! No I am not done! You should have stayed locked up in Arkham, you insane freak! In my time, you wear a badge and work with the police, and you're held accountable for your actions! And you know what, it's better that way! You know the last time someone broke out of Arkham or jail where I'm from?! Ten years! Here you've got a madman shooting people down when he can't think of a funny knock-knock joke! I can see why my mother warned me so much about you!"  
He didn't say anything during her barrage, waiting until she was finished before moving past her to get to the window and pulling something out of his utility belt.

"Are you listening to me?" she snapped at him.

"Yes," he replied, "but I'm on a time schedule."

She could hardly believe it. This was so ridiculous. He wasn't paying her any mind at all! He didn't give a damn about her feelings!

"You-"

The window clicked open and he climbed inside before glancing at her.

"Coming?"

She frowned deeply but climbed in after him. Looking around, she gasped out when she saw her father strapped down to a bed and unconscious.

"Dad," she breathed as she rushed over to his bed. "What happened to him?"

"He's been sedated," Batman stated as he walked up to him and looked him over. "Probably the doctors trying to calm him down. I can imagine there's probably guards on the other side of the door too. Best to keep quiet for now. You said he took medication?"

She was still feeling angry at him for his lack of attitude, but clearly there were more important matters at hand. Besides, what was yelling at him again going to accomplished except getting her caught and possibly kicked out?

"Yes," she replied as she glanced around, spotting his coat on a hook by the door. "Over there. He always keeps it in his pocket."

She moved to the coat, digging into it and pulling out a small plastic bottle before handing it over to him.

"This is what he takes," she said as she handed it over to him. "It balances him out, makes him Jack Napier again."

"I don't see a manufacturer label," he said as he looked it over. "Who makes it?"

"My mother did," she explained. "She is a shrink after all."

He gave her a hard look but she only shrugged.

"What? She did. It's not like anything else was working on him," she said.

"If that's the case, this is all he's going to have. Even if this turns him back, it'll wear off eventually and he'll go right back to this," he surmised as he indicated over to the man in the bed.

"I… I guess," she said. "But I'm telling you, even as the Joker, he's not-"

"I'm taking a few of these," he said as he poured a couple out. "I trust you won't object?"

"Are you even listening to me?" she asked him, flabbergasted. "I just told you that he needs those. If you take them it'll only cut his time down further."

"I know. Which is why I'm going to replicate them once I've figured out the chemical formula," he told her. "Unless you already know it?"

"I… what?" she asked, a little thrown off. "No… No, I don't know the formula. You're going to make more?"

"It might take some time, but yes. I'm sure I'll get more answers out of him if he's coherent. Besides, I doubt you would be very comfortable trying to see to him as he is," he stated.

"Why?" she asked him. "Why help him like this?"

He didn't reply as he looked down at the Joker. She had to wonder what he was thinking as she glanced back down as well. It had to be a surprise to see him like this. No doubt he looked a little different than the clown he was used to. This one was older by a good two decades or more. There were the starts of wrinkles on his skin, his once vibrant green hair now much more dull, even lines of gray starting to form in it. She'd grown up watching her parents getting older. It hadn't bothered her too much but she guessed it was quite the sight for the man in the cowl.

"I want to take him home," she said softly. "You said that you've dealt with this kind of thing before, right? You must know more about this than I do. Do you know a way to reverse whatever brought us here? We can leave and just not bother you. All I want to do is see to my father home safe and… and be allowed to bury my mother. Do you have a way to send us back?"

"That will be handled later," he informed her.

"Why? Why not now?" she asked him.

"He still killed someone. He's going to need to answer for that," he stated.

"How many times am I going to have to say it was in self-defense?"

"If these pills do what you say they do, he'll be able to stand trial. Once that's taken care of-"

"Oh yeah, cause you really strike me as a guy who cares about due process," she snorted, getting about fed up with him. "Must be why you wait for warrants to go inside to get perps and… HEY! Comes back here!"

She chased after him when he walked over to the window and shot a line from his grappling hook. Before she could even reach him, he was gone, leaving her behind. She felt herself shaking. Just how was she supposed to get down on her own? However, it didn't seem to be much of an issue as the door suddenly burst open and two heavily armored men came in, riffles in their hands and pointed in the room.

"Whoa!" she cried out, thrusting her hands up into the air. "Wait, please! I'm not dangerous, I swear!"

"Who are you?" one of the men asked. "How did you get in here?"

"My name is Lucy, I'm his daughter!" she said quickly as she indicated to the man in bed as well as she could without moving her hands. "Batman brought me here!"

"Where is he then?" the other man asked.

"He just left me here," she explained. "He was here a second ago, really."

"Alright, lady. Got any ID on you?" the first man asked, lowering his weapon and walking up to her.

Oh no. Right, like that was going to do her any good. She'd left it in her purse, which sadly hadn't made the trip with her. Even if she had it, the years on it would be off by a good amount and wouldn't have any numbers that would be traceable in any of their systems.

"I… um, no. Not on me," she said with a weak shrug.

Thirty minutes later, she grumbled a little as she looked up at the commissioner of Gotham, who was currently rubbing at his eyes and sighing softly. Handcuffed and waiting in a back of a police car, she felt this was all completely unnecessary.

"Mind telling me again how you ended up like this?" he asked.

"Why don't you ask the bozo in the tights you let run around?" she suggested. "He was the one who left me in the room with no way to sneak back out. I'd have just used the front door if I would been allowed to. I also can't help but notice no one called in advance to let them know I was coming."

She gave a sigh, realizing her head hurt way too much to tell this guy how to do his job. Maybe he'd been too busy to make the phone call. She was certainly not going to assume he hadn't known she'd left with the Batman though, that was for sure.

Idly, she couldn't help but wonder if this was the vigilante's way of punishing her for mouthing off to him so much. He did seem like the petty type what little she'd talked to him. On the other hand, he was still making the medicine, but she was pretty angry he was going to insist on her poor father having to stand trial in return for making it.

Then again… what had she really expected? Who would just take some stranger's word that he was innocent? There were dead people involved. It was bound to need to be taken care of right. What had she thought would happen, that Batman would see the Joker laying in a bed right in front of him and be convinced by that alone to just let him go?

It had been foolish to expect anything of the sort. Even a slim hope had been stupid.

"Am I under arrest?" she asked Gordon. "It really wasn't my idea to break in. Does it even count as a break in? I mean, nothing actually got broken. Breaking and entering only counts if something got broken, right?"

"Miss Napier," Gordon said warningly. "I'm going to let you out of this police car, but only if you stop talking, got it?"

She didn't see why he was so annoyed with her. What had she done wrong anyway?

"Fine," she said with a nod. After the door was opened and her cuffs were unlocked, she sighed softly. "I don't know what to do at this point though. I don't really have anywhere to go. Can I wait with him inside until he wakes up at least?"

"He's not to be around anyone but those guarding him and the doctors," Gordon said.

'And Batman apparently,' she thought to herself before saying aloud, "Look, he's going to be upset if I'm not around when he's awake. Being close by will help everyone out in the long run."

"I'll talk to the staff. You can wait for him in an area they approve. I would suggest not wandering off," he stated before going inside. She followed after him, still not seeing why this was somehow her fault. She'd have been perfectly happy going with an officer to the hospital instead of the caped crusader. How exactly was she the problem here?

Whatever. She was still being allowed back inside. That was all that mattered. Some bench in a hospital hallway or waiting room would be better than a cell any day. Waiting around while the man talked to the staff and sorted the problem out, she had to admit she was starting to feel like she could sleep standing right where she was. It had been nothing but one extreme high emotion after another and she was long past exhausted by all of it. When she was nodded to by the commissioner, she was all too happy to walk over and hear what he had to say.

"Yes?" she asked.

"They've said you can wait, as long as you don't make any trouble, but not in his room. You have to stay down here in the lobby, understand?" he said to her. "They'll let you up to visit him in the day, under surveillance."

"I guess that's the best I'm going to get," she admitted. "Okay. I won't try and sneak up to him, I promise."

"Good. Stay out of trouble," he said before he turned around and left.

She walked over to one of the chairs in the lobby and practically fell down into it, her head swimming as she laid it back and closed her eyes. Trouble, sure. As if she had the energy to even move at this point.

In fact, she didn't have the energy for much at all really. She was sure, left to her own devices, she would have broken down by now and begun sobbing her eyes out until she passed out. Now she just felt numb. After everything that had happened, she just needed the world to stop for a bit and let her catch up. Something told her she'd have plenty of time to grieve and cry, but right now she just couldn't do it anymore.

She thought of her mother as she drifted off, even as she tried not to. How would she have handled all of this? She always seemed so calm, so in control. It had been hard to even believe she'd once dressed up in tights and gone on crime sprees for the fun of it. What would she have done in the presence of the Batman? Lucy would like to think that she would have been able to do something to fix this mess, to make it all better. Lucy wished desperately the woman was by her side, that she would wake up and her mother would be sitting next to her in the hospital.

She was sure she would have done just about anything to have her here, to be home, to have this all be one giant nightmare. She just wanted one single person who gave a damn on what she was feeling about any of this and spare her even a little bit of comfort.

"Excuse me."

Her eyes opened slowly, peering at the man standing over her. Blinking a few times until her vision cleared, she stared sleepily at him. It was hard to make him out, her eyes not quite focusing for a moment until she was able to make out his features, a tall man with deep black hair with a strange shock of white right above his forehead.

"Huh?" she asked him. "Can… can I help you?"

"No," he said with a shake of his head as he leaned over her. She pushed back into the chair, but he only scooped something up from a table next to it, a newspaper from what she could see. "Just left this. Didn't want to startle you when I grabbed it."

He gave her a crooked little smirk before he walked off, leaving her feeling confused. However she quickly decided that it wasn't important and allowed herself to try to go back to sleep.

End of Chapter 2

This chapter was both fun to write and also a bit tough to do at the same time. I loved covering the history of the White Knight and how it left a bit of hope for a better future for Gotham. Things were looking up and I enjoyed how it worked to that point, showing the changes everyone in the city made to try to make their city better.

On the other hand, writing Bruce like this was hard to say the least. I didn't want him to seem unkind, but there's no doubt that he's a brisk kind of guy, even with people he knows and trusts. Lucy is judging him quite harshly herself too, given the circumstances. Even as she tries to stay level headed, the events are clearly getting to her about what she's been through and she's not thinking very clearly. Even her thoughts how no one is showing her sympathy aren't right since Gordon was actually very kind to her and even Batman was, in his own way. I wanted to say that before anyone thought this is going to be a Batman bashing fic. I swear it's not, as I greatly respect the character. These first few chapters are just from the POV from a character who doesn't think she has any reason to trust him and is in a bad emotional point in her life.


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